KUTAHYA
Turkish Deputy Finance Minister Abdullah Erdem Cantimur said Turkey's domestic and foreign debt stocks are far below countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
Cantimur said in OECD countries the ratio of government debt to gross national product (GNP) should be 60 percent at the highest but in Turkey this ratio is 36 percent.
Reminding that Turkey signed stand-by agreements over 50 years to borrow money from International Monetary Fund (IMF), Cantimur said Turkey was 23.5 billion in debt to IMF in 2002 and cleared the debt as of May 14, 2013.
"Today, when we analyze the United States and Europe we see that economic crisis is still lingering. However, Turkey's domestic and foreign debt are far below OECD countries," said Cantimur.
Cantimur added that government deficit ratio in the OECD should be 3 percent at the highest, adding that in Turkey the figure was 1.6 percent.
Indicating that Fitch and Moody's have raised Turkey's credit rating to "investment grade," Cantimur said, "the money searches for safe havens across the world. Today, the US and Europe do not seem to offer any. However, Turkey with these upgrades will get more foreign direct investments."
